Latest council bid to buy Reading Prison fails
Reading Borough Council say they are 'extremely disappointed' after MOJ reject their latest offer
Last updated 18th May 2021
Reading Borough Council say they are ‘extremely disappointed’ that their latest bid to buy the Reading prison site has been rejected.
The council say it’s become clear that their £2.6 million offer to turn the site into an arts and heritage centre isn’t acceptable to the Ministry of Justice.
The Council say it believes the MoJ is likely to once again market the site for sale to the highest bidder.
Council leader Jason Brock told us:
"It (the £2.6 million bid) has been properly assessed, it offers brilliant value for public money but it's considered by the Ministry of Justice to not be enough and what they want is at least double that. It's a shame that the MOJ continue to chase 'top buck' from private developers when that strategy has already failed and the building has sat empty for eight years.
"We've published our plan which involved some enabling development to unlock the site's culture, arts and heritage potential to create a regional destination for all of Berkshire. Anyone who thinks this is a site that can be developed intensively to bring maximum economic return hasn't looked at the site at all.
"We're the only bidder offering a holistic view of the site which offers new residential accommodation including new affordable homes but also this fantastic vision for a heritage arts and culture hub that would be a brilliant thing not only for the people in Reading but a destination for people across Berkshire".
So what now? Mr Brock says it's not over yet:
“This is now the second time the Council’s bid has been dismissed by the MoJ. It would be very easy at this point to walk away from the process, but we do not intend to do that. We understand the MoJ may be willing to keep the Council’s bid on the table while it pursues other options. We would welcome that and are happy for it to remain there for the time being. The Council also remains committed to working with the MoJ to ensure the significant historical and cultural value of Reading’s Gaol is given its rightful prominence.
“We are urging the Secretary of State to meet with us as soon as possible before any new decisions are taken by the MoJ to re-market the Gaol. Ministers have declined so far to meet with us this year, but I hope they will see the value of discussing options with us.”
Background
Reading Gaol has been empty and unused since December 2013 when it was shut by the MoJ. Following the news last year that the MoJ’s sale of the Reading Prison site had fallen through after it went to the market, Reading Borough Council was granted a period of exclusivity by the MoJ to develop its own bid for the site. That bid was submitted on March 15th and followed a summit and workshops attended influential representatives from local arts, culture, heritage, business and LGBTQ+ communities, and key politicians
The Grade II Listed Prison sits in its entirety on the former footprint of the Reading Abbey complex, a Scheduled Ancient Monument. It means that any future proposals will need to pay very careful consideration to the local and national planning policies set out by the Council in its Prison Framework and in its recently adopted Local Plan.
Councillor Tony Page, Reading Borough Council’s Lead Councillor for Strategic Environment, Planning and Transport, who said:
“The unique and rich history of the Gaol means the site comes with obvious constraints. That is something Reading Borough Council emphasised back in 2013 when the Goal was abruptly shut by the MoJ with zero notice. It is the reason why the Council moved quickly at the time to develop a Prison Framework planning document to guide any future development and it is something we will continue to emphasise to the MoJ.
“This is now the second time the MoJ has rejected a community bid for the empty site. It would be a real setback if, for a second time, the MoJ were to place Reading Gaol on the open market. It is now nearly eight years since the MoJ’s process began, and all that time the Gaol has laid empty. While the pandemic has had an obvious impact on Council finances everywhere, the MoJ appears to remain steadfast in wanting to sell the site to achieve an unrealistic price based on pre-pandemic assumptions which give little credence to the cultural and historic value of our bid.
“We maintain that the Council’s bid - backed and shaped by the local community in Reading - is a powerful one which delivers heritage led regeneration of a site of local, regional and national significance sitting within the town’s historic Abbey Quarter. Our bid also contains generous ‘overage’ conditions which will protect MoJ and general public interests should there be a subsequent increase in property prices.
“This is a once in a lifetime opportunity, a catalyst for further investment and a key driver for Reading’s recovery from the pandemic. The Council’s bid remains open, as do the lines of communication with the MoJ. I hope Ministers will now step forward and intervene.”
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Justice said:
“Following discussions with the Council, the prison will be put back on the property market. Any sale will seek the best value for taxpayers and be reinvested into the justice system, while ensuring planning requirements for the historic site are met.”
Reading Borough Council has published details of its bid at https://www.reading.gov.uk/gaol-bid/ to show what they believe is possible to achieve with the site.